As the 100th year of ISU basketball gets underway Thursday night in an exhibition against the University of Dubuque, there is no shortage of excitement on a team that has taken on a noticeably new look over the off-season – and for good reason.

The Cyclones have gone through the dismissal of point guard Mike Taylor in mid-July due to legal troubles, the arrival of highly touted power forward Craig Brackins, and Wesley Johnson’s shift in position from forward to guard, in just over three months.

On top of all that is freshman Lucca Staiger being declared ineligible by the NCAA because he played for a professional club team in Germany and the recent avulsion fracture of senior forward Jiri Hubalek’s right foot that has him sidelined for two weeks – it’s been quite the off-season.

Regardless of the issues both on and off the court, coach Greg McDermott is ready for Thursday’s exhibition and kicking off his second year.

“It’s an exciting year for us in that we are having a yearlong celebration of our 100 years of hoops here at Iowa State,” he said. “Considering the tradition of success we’ve had here at Iowa State, that’s certainly an honor. We’re excited to be a part of that and anxious to get the season underway.”

Returning starters Hubalek, Rahshon Clark and Johnson will be relied on to anchor a team that has seven freshmen on its roster and no players with significant Division I experience at the point guard position.

“There are only five returnees with quality playing experience, so it’s going to be important that we move this younger group along as quick as we can, and the leadership that we have from the upperclassmen in our program is going to be critical,” McDermott said of the team’s makeup.

In terms of the point guard position, McDermott said he will start junior Bryan Petersen, a junior transfer from Kirkwood Community College, over freshmen Dionte Garrett and Marcus Brister.

“It’s a very important position for us. I just think the fact that [Petersen] has 60 college games under his belt probably has given him a little bit of an advantage over Dionte Garrett and Marcus Brister.”

McDermott added that all three will see minutes both on Thursday night and when Iowa State plays EA Sports in an exhibition on Sunday at Hilton Coliseum.

Another change fans will take note of is Wesley Johnson, the team’s leading rebounder from last year, making the move to off-guard.

“We’ve asked Wesley to do a lot in his time here. Last year he played primarily at the power forward out of necessity. That’s not his natural position; he’s more of a wing player,” McDermott said of the change, noting that it could create some big matchup problems for Iowa State’s opponents.

With the tip-off approaching, Brackins said he can’t wait to suit up and play in Hilton Coliseum.

“I haven’t seen Hilton packed with fans at all, so I’m real excited about that. I’m excited to put this jersey on and finally play,” Brackins said. “[The older guys] said it’s something you’ve never experienced before, and it’s something you’ve got to experience. I just can’t wait.”